For the second year in a row, Rock en Seine will not take place.
The organizers of the festival organized annually since 2003, in the national domain of Saint-Cloud (Hauts-de-Seine), have formalized the cancellation of the 2021 edition, scheduled for August 27 to 29, on their social networks.
Despite the green light from the Ministry of Culture for the resumption of outdoor festivals under certain conditions, the organizers of Rock en Seine deplore a lack of details on the rules to be followed in the midst of the Covid-19 crisis.
“Even if, today, the health situation seems to be clearing, there are still a lot of question marks around outdoor events,” says Arnaud Meersseman, director of programming for the event.
"All the headliners of the 2022 edition have been confirmed"
“We lack too much information concerning the reception protocols for festival-goers, logistics, catering, it's impossible.
We cannot even certify that foreign artists will be able to return to France, while the Anglo-Saxon scene is part of the DNA of the festival.
Two and a half months ago, we knew absolutely nothing and it's very complicated to put on a big event, in such a short time, with so many unknown factors.
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This is why the organizers are already planning for the next edition.
Recognizing today to have considered the forced postponement of the 2021 festival from the beginning of this year.
A bad for a good, perhaps, since they promise a grandiose festival for next year.
“All the headliners for the 2022 edition have been confirmed.
We have a huge program, if not the largest in the history of the festival, ”boasts Arnaud Meersseman, without wanting to reveal any name.
"Even if we had been able to organize the festival this year, there is such a volume of expectations that we had to start working at the beginning of January on the 2022 edition, or even on the 2023 edition."
No TV night for now
The 2020 edition, already canceled due to the health crisis, was declined in an evening renamed the Festival des festivals,
broadcast live on France 2 and France Inter, August 27.
It had brought together twenty-five artists, including Hatik, Oxmo Puccino, Christine and the Queens or Camélia Jordana.
A reiteration of the TV format is currently not planned for this year.
However, the leaders of Rock en Seine do not rule out the possibility of organizing an event by the end of the year.
“We are thinking about plans, we are following the evolution of the pandemic very closely, we are talking to artist representatives to see what we can do.
The desire is there, in any case, ”continues Arnaud Meersseman.
The Lycéens Première Seine springboard, which for four years has aimed to bring together young artists educated in secondary schools in the Ile-de-France region, is however maintained, even if it has been slightly redesigned. “The hearings are continuing. Normally, the winner comes to play at the festival but this year, the finalists will participate in an evening which will take place in early September in Savigny-le-Temple
(Editor's note: in Seine-et-Marne).
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